"The noncommonsensical nature of Festingerís minimal justification hypothesis generated a great deal of hostility in social science circles. Theorists who interpreted all behavior as the result of incentives seemed affronted at the notion that rewards might hurt a cause rather than help it. The controversy stimulated a mass of studies from advocates and detractors of the surprising prediction. It all began with the famous $1/$20 experiment."
From From the Third Edition of A First Look at Communication Theory by Em Griffin, ” 1997, McGraw-Hill, Inc. Link from